Sunday, March 20, 2016

Republican leaders lay out 100 day strategy for denying Donald Trump the nomination.

Republican leaders adamantly opposed to Donald Trump’s candidacy are preparing a 100-day campaign to deny him the presidential nomination, starting with an aggressive battle in Wisconsin’s April 5 primary and extending into the summer, with a delegate-by-delegate lobbying effort that would cast Trump as a calamitous choice for the general election.

Recognizing that Trump has seized a formidable advantage, they say that an effort to block him would rely on an array of desperation measures, the political equivalent of guerrilla war.

There is no longer room for error or delay, the anti-Trump forces say, and without a flawlessly executed plan of attack, he could well become unstoppable.

But should that effort falter, leading conservatives are prepared to field an independent candidate in the general election, to defend Republican principles and offer traditional conservatives an alternative to Trump’s hard-edged populism. They described their plans in interviews after Trump’s victories Tuesday in Florida and three other states.

The group did not seem terribly keen on throwing their support behind Ted Cruz or John Kasich, instead talking about recruiting folks like Oklahoma Senator Tom Coburn or, get this, Rick Perry who dropped out of the race early on.

They are also considering running a third party candidate if they fail to stop Trump.

In other words this is going to be an actual civil war within the Republican party, and that can only bode well for the Democratic candidate in the general.

Which, by the way, is another reason that I want the Democratic nomination process to end quickly.

One of our main selling points right now as a party is that we are the grown ups in the room, maintaining our dignity and trusting in the process.

However if Bernie Sanders decides to take his fight all the way to the Democratic convention, which he has threatened, we lose our edge, and end up seeming just as discombobulated as the Republicans.

So, let's say they do block Drumpf. What will we have left? Cruz or Kasich?

I'm more worried about the DNC rigging things for Hillary that turn off all of Bernie's supporters. If we have too many Dems stay home pissed (like they have done before) we may end up with whichever clown is the last one standing. And it's l looking liek they'll be able to stack the Supreme Court for the next two generations.

Wrong. Bernie Sanders continuing on to the convention will NOT cause the democratic party to "seem as discombobulated as the republicans." He is maintaining a civilized, honest campaign.If anything, it prevents the republicans from focusing all their energy and wrath on one single democratic nominee. They still can't be absolutely sure just who the democratic opponent will be.

Agreed. Unlike the GOP, both our candidates are experienced, capable and have genuinely earned the privilege of running for our nation's highest office. Neither will turn the process into a schoolyard brawl.

Completely agree. Sanders adds an important voice to the party and it's more than apparent that his voice echoes many of us who support him. It strengthens the party when there is an honest sharing of ideas and brings more into the tent as a result. I am hoping Bernie stays in to the end and if Hillary is the nominee I hope he puts his full support behind her as I would expect Hillary to do if Bernie prevailed. One candidate who represents many is the only way to defeat Trump.

I don't think she "needs your vote." But I think you will need her. You should vote, in the general election, as you see fit. But if you're a Democrat, most likely you will vote for Clinton in the fall, as the alternative on the GOP is going to be monstrous, and voting for anyone else on the left is going to be throwing a vote away. #Nader

It also gives voters the semblance of having a choice when the race has been rigged by the DNC leadership for Hillary from the very beginning.

I'm tired of having to hold my nose and vote for the only candidate left by the time the primary comes to me. The DNC leadership should not be deciding who *I* vote for by eliminating anyone they don't feel can win.

That's right, Anonymous @7:10 PM Hillary and Bernie voted alike 93% of the time in the Senate. However, Bernie supporters fail to see ANY problems with their candidate and think that the only wrongdoing has come from Hillary. She's still standing strong after 25 years because of all the PHONY scandals and blatant LIES, not because she managed to evade all the inquiries made into every aspect of her life, some of them extremely intimate and ridiculously intrusive. As for Bernie, he has yet to be hit with any opposition research from the RW'ers but if they do, they will use whatever they have and what they don't have, they'll manufacture, just as they have done for Secretary Clinton.

In Blue Nation Review they spoke of this same idea, that Bernie has not yet been put under the spotlight and examined for his past and present flaws. They said the following:

"When the conservative machine cranks up and kicks into high gear, Bernie will be eviscerated, turned into an aging cartoon Commie, a flip-flopping America-hater, a 60s holdover writing bizarre essays about free sex and child rape fantasies, a non-Democrat Democrat whose embrace of the NRA undermines his claims to purity, a politician who voted against the Amber Alert system, a draft dodger, and a man who thinks women’s rights are a distraction."

If those who don't know Sanders were to read the above, would they believe that an accurate description? A small percentage might but once you break those down into individual charges, they might believe one or two, and then after reading them in another article, they'll start to accept more. It's what they do to candidates and Bernie won't be exempt. The only reason he has been until now is because they want to run against him, not Hillary. If he were to switch places with Hillary somehow, you'd see the attacks begin immediately and they wouldn't hold back.

'''Clinton should play her cards right and embrace/encourage Sanders to fight the good fight because that is how Democratic candidates exercise and celebrate our first amendment rights.''' **********************************8Although I agree Bernie should stay in the race. I DO NOT THINK Hillary have to encourage him (her opponent) to fight the good fight. She's trying to win. This is a political battle. No candidate needs to or is obligated to encourage the other.

"Hillary don't blow this! Treat Bernie and his supporters with the respect they deserve."

Should she treat the ones who call her Hitlery and Shillary with the respect they deserve? How about the ones who call her evil or the ones who say everything she's ever done (including fighting for civil rights in the 1960s) was and is a lie?

Do they deserve her respect?

If she is warm and welcoming to those people, it's because she understands the importance of continuing to fight for the rights of everyone and defeating her opponent (Trump or someone else), not because they deserve her respect.

More people should be worried about a Trump presidency or even Trump running as the Republican candidate for president. If you thought that things were violent now, we will soon be living in a police state. Media will not be allowed to say anything negative about Trump. He will have bought them all. Any dissenting opinions will not be allowed on sign boards, in protests or anywhere else or they will risk Trump's goon squad. If you think that Todd Palin got beaten up last weekend, wait until you see the Trump bullies in action. Will he have an agenda or a program? Of course not. The country will descend into chaos. I don't know why people aren't more concerned about Trump.

Could Sarah, through Todd, have threatened Trump? He wasn't giving her enough influence? McCain was afraid of her. And Todd got a beat down? Not likely, I suppose. Still, the timing is odd. Sarah and Todd have done everything short of murder (and probably that), and no one did a thing to them. Now he's beaten within an inch of his life.

Yes, Darlene, it was Trump operatives that came up here to AK and travelled 100 miles from Anchorage and then waited in the tundra for Todd to pass by drunk on his snow machine and then threw logs down so he would wreck and then beat him to a pulp.

AND, Bristol gets a ticket for broken, not working? headlight on 3/13/16, the same days as her dad's accident. Her instagram showed Trip standing beside a black pickup and the trailer Todd uses to haul his snowmachies (snowmobiles). Her truck is white. She was posting pictures from the cabin shortly before Todd's accident. Was she at the cabin or home at the time of the accident? As usual with the Palins, nothing is straighforward.

I agree with Gryphen about there being a problematic aspect to a two-person Dem race until the convention, but I can see positives for it remaining two-person for a while longer, and since it looks like Trump isn't going to get the # he needs anytime soon then I am more at ease with our own two-person debate going on for a while.

I don't think Bernie will last (no offense--I have always liked who Bernie is and he and Sanders Levin are two of my all-time favorites) and it will then be time for Obama to get out there and do what he's been dying to do for whoever the Dem candidate is. And I am hoping Bernie will, too, just as I would expect it of Hillary if Hillary lost to Bernie, but I just don't think that will happen (even if it looks good for Bernie in the Pacific Northwest, I don't see him getting the nom).

AS much as I believe Hillary will get the nom, I worry about the crazy Trump voting number and want all the Dems and liberals to make sure that the all-around get-out-the-vote movement has plenty of time in its rally behind the Dem candidate to ensure that we don't lose because people stayed home.

I go back and forth on this. Sanders joined the Democratic Party to run for the nomination but seems to have more contempt for than allegiance to the party. He hasn't done anything over the years to defeat the GOP in Congressional and state races to build the type of base needed for a lasting 'revolution'.

I think he's a wild card and I'm not 100% convinced he's going to back Clinton when she gets the nom. I like most of his positions, but not everything he's done or said and I've read accounts of him being arrogant in the face of people (democrats) who disagree with him. I hope he hasn't started to let his supporters unmitigated devotion go to his head.

you make a good point 3:39pm. I've been an independent since I was first able to vote in 1984. I wish that Bernie would have held true to OUR principals rather than ally with the democrats; it's been a big sticking point for me in supporting him ideologically. We are independents for a reason, not so we can just go "d" because it is convenient and gets more exposure.

@4:47pm"I've read accounts of him being arrogant in the face of people (democrats) who disagree with him."

I know someone [formerly GOP] with personal dealings with Sanders who said he flat out wouldn't even acknowledge the person or listen to opinions/ideas. This person appreciates him and actually agrees with him on identifying issues/problems that need to be addressed but said he refuses to think through the solutions.

'''Bernie makes a better Democrat than Hillary! She has changed so many of her views to align with him!''*******************************BS, Hillary has not changed her views to align with Bernie. They just happen to have similar views.

The GOP has embraced every fringe, far right, religious, racist, gun-humping nut they could find, for the last 25 years, in order to win their votes.

So now the freaks are finally messing up their fancy dinner party?

The guy with a 9th grade education guzzling $200 a bottle Bordeaux from a plastic cup is suddenly "too much"?

The guy who showed up to their country club shindig with an AR-15 on his back and two sidearms and another in the back of his pants is suddenly NOT allowed to the party?

The 40-year old barefoot and pregnant mother of a brood of 15 ignorant homeschooled kids is no longer welcome to bring her clan to their fancy pool?

Somehow the "elite GOP" hasn't received the message that these people ARE THEM now, they are the majority of the Grand Old Party. Your elephant has gas and its farts are these people, smelly, really funky and extremely pervasive, and without them you'll be lost.

Too little, too late folks. As they say "them who brung them must dance with them."

If I didn't have an overwhelming tendency not to give a shit about what happens to the republican party or Donald Trump; I'd actually care that what the GOP is trying to do proves them to be a bunch of poisonous vipers who could give a damn about fair play or the rule of law. Trump is who they truly are, only louder.

Gryphen... I just checked Zillow for Scottsdale, Arizona, and the price for Sarah's house has dropped by $124K. Haven't seen it mentioned in a while so thought I'd check. Thought people might be interested, or at any rate, entertained!

BECAUSE they're lazy and complacent, 4:28 PM. If $arah got anything right, it's calling them "lamestream" because she knew they wouldn't a damned thing about it and she was free to spew her poison without any repercussion. Same thing with courts.

What an absolute BITCH in the name of her supposed "god," which is actually $$.

Gyphen, please explain why it is you are so set against Sanders. Near as I can see so far it's just that he's running against Clinton for the nomination but that's not much of a reason, IMHO. There are a number of folks (quite a number!) who don't see him as an evil dragon but rather as a viable possibility. Those of us in the Northeast have known and watched the guy for many years; we've seen that his stripes don't change, have watched him dog his way through many, many nasty, sticky situations without flagging. He has resolutely stood up for all sorts of non-mainstream groups (blacks, native American groups, groups of people disadvantaged in many ways, women's issues, etc) and against all sorts of top-heavy corporate, political and corporate issues; he stays the course every time. So I'll admit a preference for him. FWIW, I will vote for Clinton if need be but I have always and still do mistrust her very clear leanings toward and pandering to the high-finance folks; in particular I think her longstanding cozy association with Monsanto may well be worse yet and is dangerous to every one of us now, in real time. So for what reason/s do you find Sanders so unacceptable, especially at this point in the game? I don't get it.

I don't think people have a problem with Sanders it is his supporters that I don't like. They call Clinton a liar and accuse her of all kinds of BS. If they would realize that the Dems have 2 good candidates and support whoever wins the nomination instead of saying they will not vote or vote 3rd party.

I won't answer for Gryphen but I'm a longtime Alaskan, me and my husband are 100% behind Bernie. We actually are going to write him in even if he doesn't get the nom because we know our POTUS votes don't matter and we'll vote our conscience.

Excellent question. Hillary's message seems to be, "Things are complicated to accomplish; just be content with the way things are." Bernie's supporters know this, but you've got to start believing that inequality & corruption can be addressed & changed, else why bother getting up in the morning?

3:48 if your votes don't count, why is the RNC in such a pickle? Your vote counts. Maybe not as much as we all would have thought before we learned so much about the delegate process, but it counts. Please don't waste it.

I don't see that as Clinton's message. She wants to continue to help move the country to the left. Maybe it's not as quick a move as many of us would like, but we have to remember that the majority of Americans are moderates, not progressives.

Anyone who thinks HRC is more politically to the right than Bernie has not read Bernie's complete voting record(#SierraBlanca). I like them both but it's clear he will not be the nominee. I vote in California, where HRC has been a Democratic party favorite for a long time. Bernie won't take NY or CA. So then it's just a protest movement, but that's fine. We're Democrats; we believe in expression. We should highlight progressive issues and come together for the nomination.

Hillary's message is not "just be content with the way things are." The difference between her and Sanders is she is practical about how to move forward. Sanders simplifies ever problem to economic inequality and the greedy millionaires and billionaires. He's got a great populist message but he's wrong. It's more complicated. Just one example: you can tax Wall Street and the 'millionaires and billionaires' and get more kids a college education and you still have the racist problem.

Bernie has been talking about running for President and a revolution since 1985! Why didn't he run in '12 when he wanted someone to primary President Obama? When Hillary brought up the fact that he wanted President Obama primaried, he tried to deny it, but it's definitely true. Instead, he said to her, "I'm not the one who ran against him, you did." What a ridiculous response. When Clinton vs. Obama campaigned, it was Senator vs. Senator, not someone from his political party trying to challenge him. Bernie likely didn't run in '12 because if he had, he knew that the African-American votes for him in '16 would be non-existent, not just bad, but almost zero after having primaried our first black President. Why else do you call for a challenger and then run four years later when you're 75 years old?

He's also hidden his assets under his wife's name to appear poor. He rails against those with money but he and his wife had both made six figures a year in any job they have had for the last 25 years plus. He owns two homes, one in Vermont, the other in D.C. and if he is only worth $350k as he claims, he's not the person that belongs in the oval office. He'd be an extremely poor financial mgr. if that's all he has to show for it after all these years, especially with credit card debt of tens of thousands of dollars. Too many issues that are unexplained IMO.

I'm also sick of him saying he's the only one who beats Trump. The only reason it looks that way is due to a lack of opposition research being released by the GOP on him because they prefer to run against him rather than Hillary. He knows this but keeps spreading this b.s. and believing everyone else is stupid!

I admit to being naive but I don't understand why the RNC doesn't just tell Trump 'No, you can't run for president on the GOP ticket.' His inciting violence gives them an easily explained reason to disqualify him.

Oh, but it's not his fault! It MoveOn and BLM and liberals looking fro a fight. We are scared to death of him-just ask his mouthpiece Katrina Pierson. We can't stand democracy. We want America to fail. And on and on. He's so typical of the RNC-nothing is ever his responsibility, and that would include decisions made in the WH, just like "Kept us Safe' by waterboarding innocents, bombing two nations to smithereens, and ruining the economy Bush.

Bernie Sanders Makes His Move And Presses Superdelegates To Go With The Popular Vote

Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders (I-VT) is pressed superdelegates to go with the popular vote in their states during an interview on CBS's Face The Nation.

Bernie Sanders has to convince the leaders of the Democratic Party that he is the best choice for the 2016 nomination. Superdelegates aren’t a surprise or a conspiracy. The process has been used by the Democratic Party for decades. The path to Sanders winning the Democratic nomination will be fueled by large margins of victory.

Sanders is making his case to superdelegates, but the best way to impress them remains to win.

I find it appalling the DNC rigs the nomination with superdelegates to make sure if the people don't pick the candidate they want, they can rig the nomination with their superdelegates.

Why bother with the shame of a primary if you're going to give your favorite all of the superdelegates before the campaigning even begins. Why not just tell the people, "this is who we have chosen" and be done with it?

May I remind mlaiuppa that Bernie Sanders asked to run for the Democratic nomination? Should he have asked to run under special Bernie rules and not the same rules that all real Democratic candidates run under?

I am baffled by Trump supporters and try to figure them out. My religious, Kentucky relatives are for Trump because they hate Hillary and Bernie. A friend in my Wisconsin town says it's because he is an outsider. It's hard for me to understand how they don't see that he is a disaster.

I think Bernie has delusions of grandeur. The fact is, he is NOT winning states, or not enough. His plea to the 'super delegates' is dumb, because Hillary will have the popular vote. He needs to step back and take the country into account before he tears the Democratic Party apart. We need unity in November, or we could lose the nation entirely, and once a GOPer is back in control, there will be no return to sanity or democracy.

...“Some folks find it to be interesting and that’s great,” Priebus said. “But it isn’t likely and it’s probably too late and there is no definitive answer right now as to who the nominee is going to be of our party.”

I watched some democratic pundit casually say "Donald isn't a Democrat problem, he's a Republican problem". My jaw almost dropped, he's everyone's problem, even if he loses, he's everyone's problem. He's got too much ego, too little class, lots of time on his hand, and more money to waste than all of them put together. His tweets are a study in depravity and bigotry.

Wait. The GOP had trump sign a pledge that he would not run as a 3rd party candidate, and now they're talking about running a 3rd party candidate?! Rick Perry? Jesus, how the mighty have fallen. They can't spell hypocrisy, much less define it.GeorgiaPeach

I disagree with Gryphen on wrapping it up between Hillary & Bernie. In 2008 Hillary Clinton won something like 8 or 9 states on Super Tuesday. There were a lot of wins and losses back and forth between Clinton & Obama during the primaries. Hillary didn't drop out until the end of the primaries in 2008. Bernie shouldn't either in 2016. I say let it play out with the voters.

Let Bernie stay in but he needs to stop the attacks on Hillary. She was never as far behind Obama as Bernie is behind her. She was at most 150 pledged delegates behind and he's over 300+ and there's no way he's going to make that up with the states that are left that are big delegate #'s. Stay in but stop the trashing. However, I just heard on the news that he said he's just getting ramped up, not about to tone it down. What a MF'er. He doesn't give a damn about the party that was his biggest donor for 2 elections or helped him to get elected! If Bernie isn't re-elected to the Senate at the age of 78, do you think he'd turn down six figures for a speech? No way!

With so much poverty hidden in plain sight, you have to ask: is this still America? | Brigid Delaneyhttp://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2016/mar/21/with-so-much-poverty-hidden-in-plain-sight-you-have-to-ask-is-this-still-america

Donald Trump's New Washington, D.C. Hotel Is Made for Really Big Ballshttp://www.forbes.com/sites/msolomon/2016/03/01/donald-trump-international-hotel-washington-dc/#130c4d4d2e52

He inspired a lot of new Dem registrations i my state. That's for the good of all, I believe. The ones to whom I have spoken will not be voting Republican, for sure, so Hillary if not Bernie. Either way we win!

About Me

This blog is dedicated to finding the truth, exposing the lies, and holding our politicians and leaders accountable when they fall far short of the promises that they have made to both my fellow Alaskans and the American people.